Soilwork have long been one the most consistent acts in melodic death metal. Although they’ve rarely received the same amount of critical recognition as formative bands like In Flames, Dark Tranquility or At the Gates, they’ve nevertheless managed to put together a catalogue of records whose overall quality rivals any…

Welcome back to Genre Genesis. For newcomers, here’s a brief overview of how this works. Four of the other editors – Nick, Scott, Jonathan, and Eden – have partners who are, shall we say, not nearly as invested in heavier music as we tend to be, and so their knowledge…

It’s hard to write these intros without spoiling other posts from our end of year content; after all, this intro is focused on 2018 and what it has been and that’s addressed in multiple upcoming posts as well. However, it still needs to be done and this post is, nominally…

Midpoint. Half in, half out. Shadow. A divide. Balance. The semantic milieu surrounding stuff that’s divided 50/50 is incredibly rich; it opens some of the greatest cultural creations of all time (“Midway upon the journey of our life / I found myself within a forest dark” – Dante’s The Inferno) and…

Ah, May! One of the best months of the year, when Spring is here and the elements seem more benign before the scorching heat of the Summer sun descends upon us. It’s also a good time for music, as many labels, bands and outlets shake off the webs of Winter’s…

Even a cursory glance of our biweekly playlist updates will reveal that there is a great deal of variety among our staff’s musical tastes. Due to this, we brainstormed the idea of Playlist Swap, where two of our contributors pick their favorite track from each of the nine albums in their grid…

Me and regular co-host Cody get together and discuss stuff. Cattle Decapitation being nice to students who were discriminated against, Limp Bizkit signing to Napalm Records, The Ghost Inside deciding to continue after their tragic accident, Metallica having some fun live despite Kirk, and Elliot Coleman doing a song for Dragonball Super. Then some recent music, like Alkaloid, Dimmu Borgir, Ihsahn, and Childish Gambino. Then we do a cool people section with God of War, and extended spoiler discussions of Westworld and Infinity War. Enjoy!

Each month, we always seem to come to the same conclusion when it comes to our Editors’ Picks column: Friday release days open the floodgates and unleash a seemingly endless stream of quality new music. But while some of our Editors and Contributors sit down gleefully each week to dive into this newly stocked treasure…

Just picture yourself sitting at the right side of a decades old career. Be honest with yourself: as you survey all you have achieved and consider your next steps, what kind of emotions course through you? It’s safe to say that many of us would feel contentment, a sort of deep satiation. You’ve earned the trust and respect of your peers and the adoration of several generations of fans; where do you find the fuel to move forward? Honestly, I have no idea but Ihsahn appears to have found a secret store of whatever substance keeps musicians going well past would anyone else would consider the peak of their career and into heights.

This week me and my regular co-host Cody are tired of all the garbage in metal. Marduk, Cirith Ungol, Meshuggah, Decapitated, just throw it all in the trash fire. Then, more positivity. Cody is really excited about Psycho Las Vegas, which leads to him checking out Wolves In The Throne Room. There’s a new Ihsahn song, and I got into Krosis, and tried to get into the new Panopticon album. Then we talk about Death, Gruesome and Cist. Finally, we go over this video comparing Mike Portnoy and Mike Mangini, and what the loss of Portnoy means for Dream Theater. Then, cool people time with A Quiet Place, The Knick, Unsane, The Exorcist (TV show) and more. Enjoy!